Tuesday, 26 July 2016

Do you have a need for catering? You have many options. Despite offering the same service, they, of course, vary in many ways. For instance, different caterers would differ in quality, at the very least. If you were to engage the services of a caterer, you need to do your due diligence and find out if your prospects bear the qualities you are looking for. First and foremost, however, you need to determine just what your requirements are. Here is a good list of criteria to steer you in the right direction.

Cooking – What’s at the very heart of catering services? Caterers know that they can’t possibly succeed without the capability to provide great-tasting food. It doesn’t matter how beautiful their set up is and how many bells and whistles they add to their packages, if the food is mediocre at best, you won’t want them to cater for you. You also need to verify that the caterer has enough cooking experience to plan menus, make recipe substitutions, cook for a huge group without the quality suffering, as well as safely prepare, transport, and reheat large amounts of food.

Compliance with government standards – You may want to read on food safety laws and deliberately discuss them with your prospects to check how cognizant they are of food safety regulations for the nation.

Communication skills – It’s not just about cooking. A caterer should know how to be tactful and courteous in order to deliver excellent customer service. Whatever situation may arise, it shouldn’t be compounded by miscommunication and unnecessary misunderstanding. This is where communication and social skills come in handy. You really don’t want to deal with a caterer who is not personable and who is difficult to communicate with besides.

Creativity and imagination – Wouldn’t you prefer a service that offers beyond what is standard? This is why gourmet catering services enjoy an edge. It’s common to see the same things on the menus provided by different caterers, so your attention is immediately caught by ones that deviate from the usual offerings. You also want a service that has the flexibility to meet your unique requirements and cope with whatever challenges they may present. An excellent caterer has the imagination to come up with fitting solutions that will guarantee satisfaction.

Careful attention to detail – From food to arrangements, to presentation, to service execution, etc. a caterer must be on top of everything and meticulous enough to ensure that everything is in place and achieving its purpose beautifully.

Taking the time to do a comparative research of your prospective caterers will ensure that you make the best choice.

About the author: Karren Colstone works as a food critic. She has been in this field for five years now. Her specialty is desserts but she also has a background in other types of food. When she is not writing, she maintains a blog about food. She shares her experiences in dining at different kinds of restaurants. Furthermore, she imparts her knowledge about food catering and preparation to her readers. She visits sites like http://www.1762.ae.

I am Maria and introduced the Reviews and general Tips on blogger. ViewsFiews is a consumer protection blog that lets people research and review online businesses and websites. Search for general Tips on any topic and some reviews or complaints on any website written by well-known authors.

Corporate lunch catering is your singular logical option for feeding a large group of people at your workplace. This is infinitely better than taking everybody out to lunch at a restaurant. It means that there’s no need to make reservations, risk the restaurant bumbling your reservation, contend with moving the group to another location, worry about the awkwardness of ordering, or even obsess over going beyond the budget.

Now that we’ve established that catering is the way to go, how do you choose which catering company to bring your business to? You should base your choice on the following criteria:

Taste. Do a sampling with each of your candidates. You want to feed your associates and clients something that is pleasing to their palate. Eating is a communal experience in this setup, and you want to ensure that you set things on a positive note by serving gastronomically delightful fare. There shouldn’t be a weak link. Everything from the main course, to the dessert, to the hot and cold canapés, to the beverages, etc. should be superb.

Wholesomeness. It’s important to serve a healthful selection. It’s another way of demonstrating goodwill. You show your business associates that you care about their well-being. Good food also leads to sharper minds, higher levels of energy, and general good health which, of course, translate to better performance.

Variety. You want to be able to offer something for everyone, keeping in mind food sensitivities and preferences, so make sure you hire a service that can whip up a wide range of offerings. They can make sure that there’s something gluten-free, peanut-free, egg-free, soy-free, dairy-free for those with allergies, something low-fat and low-sodium for those on a strict diet, something completely free or animal-sourced ingredients for the vegan, etc.

Freshness. Naturally, you want a caterer who mainly uses fresh ingredients. It’s even better if it sources them locally, but many people like and are impressed by exotic fare, so, in this case, high quality imports are called for.

Efficiency. Everything service-related falls under this. The caterer must be punctual and professional. The packaging must be robust, yet attractive. The implements may be disposable, but still eco-friendly. It should all amount to a satisfying dining experience.

Price is another criteria, but many companies are prepared to pay for quality. As long as pricing is reasonable, it should be all good. If you have candidates in mind, take the time to visit their websites. From there you can evaluate their passion for what they do. Do they have a gourmet food blog besides the usual menu and list of services? Did they take the time to provide enticing descriptions or adopt the vibe of their business in the design of the site? These little details all matter.

Choose well and you can ensure successful corporate lunches for your business.

About the Author:

Karren Colstone works as a food critic. She has been in this field for five years now. Her specialty is desserts but she also has a background in other types of food. She maintains a blog where she shares her experiences in dining at different kinds of restaurants. She visits sites like http://1762.ae/blog/ for food catering and preparation tips.

I am Maria and introduced the Reviews and general Tips on blogger. ViewsFiews is a consumer protection blog that lets people research and review online businesses and websites. Search for general Tips on any topic and some reviews or complaints on any website written by well-known authors.

Thursday, 14 July 2016

Most of us have pondered this many times before. I believe it is important for every person to have a dream, it is what makes us different and special.

When I was just 4 years old in 1986, my parents decided to move our family to the United states from Colombia. At the time, Colombia was going through treacherous times in the 80s and 90s. My parents decided to leave our home country in order to ensure better schooling opportunities for my siblings and I.

With very little close to none English, both my parents had taken lowly jobs, working 16 hours a day just to provide enough for my sister and I. Eventually my parents had saved up enough to start their own business. With they money they had saved, my parents would purchase clothing garments in Downtown Los Angeles and sell them outside of L.A. They would sell them at a markup at various swap meets.

At such an early age, the traits of being an entrepreneur were in me. Often times, I would wake up at 4:00 A.M. to help set up shop at the swap meet. I would help my parents bag the clothes our customers would purchase and thank them with a great big smile.

Today, I am 35 years old and run a successful online marketing company. I am not here to plug my services, nor am I here to boast about my success. I am here to share what I have learned from my own experiences as an entrepreneur.

In this blog post I will go over 8 keys to becoming a successful immigrant entrepreneur.

Confidence

For us immigrants, language can be a huge obstacle, however, you must believe in your business. When I speak with someone about my business or even with my mom, they always can feel the passion and really see the passion I have for it. Confidence is not a front we can just put up whenever we need it.

I had to teach myself on believing in my business and ultimately in myself. A few years ago I read a book about a successful businessman. In the book the author went to on to say what we are today is a product of what we repeatedly do, therefore success is habit.

This really stuck with me. Soon I began acquiring new habits such as: waking up at 6:00 A.M. to go to the gym, speaking in public, eating high protein/low carb diet, and the hardest task I have had to do which is positive self talk.

Diversity

Having a company in California has brought us team members from different ethnic backgrounds. We also have team members in differents part of the world like; Colombia, Mexico, and India. Having a multicultural/multilingual team has definitely expanded our outreach to other groups where English is not their first language.

A Great Attitude

In my opinion, having a great attitude is the most important, it is above everything else. As an immigrant in the United States you are faced with various challenges in just about every aspect of life let alone starting a business. Having a great attitude can be used as a tool because you can use it to face adversity, eventually it will become second nature and be a part of your personality.

I love my business a lot and a I know that my team members depend on it to provide for their families. In the past 8 years I have been sick many times. However, I do not let my business partners ever know about it. Last year I got a urinary infection causing me a lot of pain. I visited the doctors and was put on medication, but nobody in my team ever knew about it. The reason why is because I am not going to let a little pain affect my attitude. If I come into work with a negative energy it will affect everyone else. Your attitude is contagious, make sure that you have the right attitude that is worth catching.

Remember To Have Pride In What You Do

My father taught me this lesson. Having been raised in poverty in Bogota, Colombia, my father taught us to always be proud of who we are. As an entrepreneur, you must have pride in the work you are doing and always aim to overdeliver.

I remember one of my first clients. They were a small business that could only pay $500 month for search engine optimization and search engine marketing. I was so happy to have them has a client that it did not matter to me what they were paying. I was solely excited about being paid for doing something I really love doing. My goal with this client was to get them more traffic to their website and help them sell more. They loved the special attention I was giving them, that soon after they became a $1,000 a month client, and then a $2,000 a month client.

Today my team strives to overdeliver with every client and to do everything with pride and heart. We send monthly reports out in the form of screencast videos showing what we actually worked on. Instead of the traditional emailing the client when something goes wrong, we make sure to call them and speak to them about it.

You Are Who You Hang Out With

Growing up, my mom was never happy with the type of individuals I would hang around with. I remember her always telling me “Show me who your friends are, and I will tell you who you are.” Today, I look back at those times and I could not agree more with her. In business, us entrepreneurs are like athletes who need coaches and mentors.

Many people have came to me asking how and where can they find a mentor. This always brings a smile to my face because I remember my first mentors; Robert Kiyosaki, Wallace Wattles, Napoleon Hill, Bill Gates, Steve Jobs, etc… Coming from immigrant parents, who were not raised in the US system, meant I had to go and find these mentors myself. I did this by purchasing their books at the local bookstore.

The entrepreneurs of today are very fortunate because they have all the free information in the world at the tips of their fingers. Even if you were to not have internet access, a mobile device, or a computer, you can always go to the public library and use it for free.

Respect

To earn respect, you have to give respect. This is something we were taught in the early years of grade school. After learning this, we think respect should be mutual as it should be, however that is not always the case. I have had a lot of people disrespect me, especially working in telesales when I was a teenager. One thing is very clear, you must remember to remain professional, even if the other side is being disrespectful to you. Your business will never gain anything if you let your emotions take over.

Keep In Touch With Loved Ones

As immigrants we still have family overseas, moreover, in countries where the internet is not so reliable, causing connection to be difficult at times.

As an international entrepreneur now, I am constantly traveling and calling my family has been something I have had to put in my calendar. Being a resourceful businessman, I have found numerous ways to stay in touch even when long distance. Speaking with my family reminds me why I started this business in the first place.

Never Give Up

Immigrants need to adapt to new life, language and culture. It is not an easy journey. Immigrant business owners will face many obstacles. Embrace these differences and challenges. Turn them around and utilize them to grow your business.

I am Maria and introduced the Reviews and general Tips on blogger. ViewsFiews is a consumer protection blog that lets people research and review online businesses and websites. Search for general Tips on any topic and some reviews or complaints on any website written by well-known authors.